On Friday Brin and I hosted a party for the leadership team that helped with the event I described in my last post. After just mentioned that we'd like to host a party for the group, in typical Brazilian fashion, it took on a life of it's own. Soon we learned that it was going to have a "Hawaiian" theme and each person was to bring a white elephant gift. We had a great time with the group. I really have been impressed by their servant's heart and dedication. I hope you enjoy the pictures from our luau/Christmas party:
A few weeks ago I made a street advertisement that promoted an evangelistic event that our church was doing here in Altamira. I have been helping with the planning of this event, often feeling both impressed and a little bit cynical about the grandeur of the project. Well, I'm here to report on the outcome. First, an update on my growing position as an advertising agent:
I was told 3 days before the event that we would be given some free airtime on the local TV stations and they wanted me to put together a commercial. I threw something together and the guys seemed impressed. I never saw it on TV (we don't own a TV). I imagine it probably ran at 3:00 am, sandwiched between an ad for a 900 number and the latest exercise equipment that will revolutionize your life.
The day we were to begin setting up at a local gymnasium I realized very little was going to be ready by the advertised 7:00 start time. Literally, at 6:45 I was in my truck driving around the city picking up instruments for the band. As we arrived back at the venue at 7:15, some of our band members were just leaving to go home and take a shower! There was a part of me freaking out. But when I looked around at all the workers, no one was acting like I was feeling. No one had one bit of urgency in what they were doing. Even the crowd, who had just been trickling in up to this point didn't look one bit incensed that we were obviously not going to start on time. I think things finally started at 8:30, an hour and a half later than advertised (in my commercials, mind you). By then I had resigned myself to not caring.
The event itself is not easy for me to explain. It was an evangelistic event, but seemed not too seeker-friendly, in my American evangelical mind. The theme was "miracles", or "Jesus is alive", depending on who you ask. The program included dance performances, a drama, worship music and a talk. Following the talk there was a ministry time where people came forward to receive prayer for healing.
What impressed me the most about this whole undertaking was the way it was planned entirely by the youth group leadership team (comprised mostly of college and young adults). I love working with this group and they truly put many hours into planning the event (although not enough effort went into the details, but that's just my opinion).
My role was kind of like a consultant, they would ask my opinion and sometimes they would do it, other times I think they probably laughed at me when I left. I was also in charge of the video and photography team (I'm telling you, they were serious about this). I have been commissioned to make a DVD of the event, including a "making-of" segment. For some reason unknown to me they seem to be more excited about the "making-of" than they do about the actual video. I can't tell you how many times someone has come up to me and told me "can you film this and put it in the making-of"? And that's how they say it too "making-of", I guess DVD's don't bother translating that description so they have grown to include the English phrase in their language, except it sounds more like "moking oov", so it took me awhile to understand what they were saying.
Anyway, I'm having grave reservations about this DVD. I'm not sure how it's going to live up to the expectations. And is it OK to have a DVD with a "making-of" segment that is longer than the actually video? I'm so confused. But I better get going because I have several hours of video and about 1,000 pictures to weed through. The video and photography team that I was in charge of was not lacking enthusiasm, fortunately they eventually ran out of storage space.
I really did not consider the recital essential to my daughters upbringing.
I had a language mishap the other day. Not a funny one either. I was having a short conversation with a young women, she was 20 or even younger. I asked her how she was and she did not give me the quick, standard, "all well" response. Instead she told me that she is pregnant and left her boyfriend because he hits her. But here is what stinks, I didn't undertand. So I asked her to repeat it. I think she used some slang, sorta like "he slapped me around" or something. I didn't get it so again, she repeated and again I didn't undertand. On the third time, I understood and felt like garbage that I made her repeat something so horrible 3 times. But here is what really stinks. I was so stunned about what I did and somewhat paralyzed in the awkward moment that I did nothing, said precious little, and even worse, didn't even ask to pray for her. I see know that I was preoccuped with my lack of language to allow God's power to work through me. This insight into myself is sobering. I have thought about it a lot since then. How I get so concerned about my lack of fill-in-the-blank that I miss out on being powered in the way God intended me to be. I hope I have a chance to run into that girl again.
Josh had a great weekend. He spent a lot of time planning, organizing and working at a big event the central church put on. The weekend isn't over yet so check back soon for video, pictures and Josh's take on the whole weekend.
It is 3:30 am and I can’t sleep because I drank too much guarana. My friend who is a chemical engineer(and who works at the local guarana factory, informed me that a guarana bean has more caffeine than a coffee bean. I believe him.
I lay in bed tonight thinking about “what ifs.” We had a little one yesterday. Josh was out with Mia and was getting on his motorbike when he bumped a long, heavy piece of metal sitting against a pillar and it crashed down on Mia. She is a bit bruised but what saved her from potentially another trip to the hospital was that she already had her helmet on. Thank goodness. Close calls like that kind of prompt me to remember other close calls. About this time a year ago, we were moving from one place that we had been house sitting for 3 months to a different house. We pretty much had everything moved so that night Josh and the girls slept in the new place. I stayed back at the old house because I had neglected to find a house sitter earlier that day. Plus I was not thrilled about leaving that house for a lesser. Anyway, here in Altamira, when you leave your house for the night you almost always ask someone to house sit for security reasons. We have heard stories about people arriving home to see their washing machine being lowered over their wall or another story where a couple went to the hospital to deliver their baby and when the husband went back to the house, their valuables and clothing had been stolen. Theft is so common and all the security measures, like guard dogs and privacy walls that felt weird when we first moved here are quite normal to us now. So to guard the house I slept there one last night. It went fine and the next day I lined up a sitter.A day later I talked to the house sitter and discovered that someone had broken into the house that night. She had smartly put on the security alarm and when it was triggered she awoke just in time to witness a man running out the door empty handed. See the thing is, the night before I had slept there. And I often did not use the alarm because those were the days when I was not sleeping well and I didn’t want to risk tripping the alarm when I got up to pace the kitchen or get a drink. I am not sure what I would have done but I certainly thought about it. And a year later, that “what if” situation still crosses my mind.
Another more humorous “what if” occurred 9 months or so ago. We had taken a trip to the Brasil Novo waterfall. I love that place. A small group of us were hiking through a wet creek bed when someone called out to stop and pointed to ground. Peaking out of some jungle river debris was a poisonous Amazon dart frog! You know, the kind Indians use to tip their blow-darts with poison. They are so rare and I was ecstatic and immediately began calling for Emily and Ella to come see it. I must have gotten too close because Alison pulled me back and said, “Careful, that snake can kill you.” I really wanted it to be a dart frog and didn’t believe him until the creature came out a little farther and revealed it’s triangular, some might say frog-shaped, yellow-speckled head. At least 3 pair of bare feet had trampled over it. Again, thank goodness. So on the way home I thought about it. Josh and I were leading that little group of 11 people. I was the only one with any healthcare knowledge but really that is inconsequential since I have no schooling on poisonous snake bites. But I thought about what I would have done. Tourniquet and transport was all I could think of. It would still take an hour to get to a hospital and that would be with no rain and driving as if someone’s life depended on it.
Josh has an even better “what if” story of when he was living in Papua New Guinea. I will let him share it. But on the subject of close calls and “what if’s”, they do get you thinking, don’t they? Large occurrences, like 9/11 incited masses of “what if” testimonies. And those big occurrences prompt us to think and rethink our lives. It gives us a chance to refocus our lives if we let it. Surely, if you take a second you can think of your own “what if” account and how it reshaped you as a person. But the little “what ifs” can start to add up too. And it not properly dealt with they can become rather overwhelming. Don’t ask what I mean by “dealt with” because like I said I am still thinking about mine years later. But here are some thoughts my mind has mulled over. Was Mia protected yesterday because of the relentless prayers of her great-grandparents? Quite possibly, yes. Do you think that hint of an experience with a middle-of-the-night thief make me appreciate the safety I have thus far experienced. Absolutely. It is when we have a difficult illness that we appreciate our previous health or when we have experienced a lay-off when we understand how good that old job we used to complain about really was. Those moments provide perspective. And in those moments if we can change our perspective to worship God as the guide in our lives that is what changes the rethinking of our lives to actual transformation. But even better, if we worship God, again as the guide of our lives, when the “what if” actually occurs, it proves that our worship and dependence on Him is not based on current circumstances. God is always worthy of our acknowledgement and praise, no matter how lousy we might feel, how massive the mistake we made was or what close calls fearfully become realities. The choice to embrace God is ours to make.
